Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1887-06-08
AZ OLD ProyKER.

Amang TIE daIsgnaas 70 ths Fisneer
ksuaioD as Pert TowussnA. fFo@ Seat
&c. p Unels HszEy Van AssalA . tkrifty
farmsE, uho 0sns . large faE1 @ he
Davanish river. whsss he sttlsd IS
years aRa. BE came 70 Anaries ffu9
Holland IN Isl7, at The Go Of 80 ysAxz.
Being TIE arz4 person from his ssetion
10 come 70 tie United States. be pEsm-
issd hin psopls - travel fron oae end
Of the c0onkry 10 the other and wrils
them she result Of his ohsnFv8aians. he
arsl s10ppea 10 Hew Jerssy and than went
wea1 TO es. Louis, where be worked e.
eomm0a lAborax for i've moa1Aa. From
there be vent 10 Iowa and worked In
aawmili. and from thaEe 10 nlinoia.
whefs be remained till The spEina Of
Lao, when he FsE1Rned 10 Ioga and
made ons Of . party Of eight. with TIVE
or tsans. VITO started
TO eaoss rEE rIAus
To the then far 81 region sf Oregon.
After he usual hasdships and sxpsFi-
ensea incident 10 such . j0aFnsy. the
little party arrived AZ Oregon City on
September q. ls5o. Thsy worked 81
ahinaie-making anti spFinc, On the
banks Of the Tualatin river. near the
late James y. Moors's watsr-poVes ssW
mill. In thsas days the gold fever
vas q very eomDoa disease on this
coast. This little party eauaht 10 20 9
man, and they 81 out f0r the mines to
Northern OAlifoxnis. 10 i've and one
half weeks they diyide& the sesult Of
tAsiF lsboEs and fouRd thsy had taken
cot
ONE THOUSAND DoLxAzs ZACH N GOLD
DUsT.
The water gave oua % they could no
longer WoFk their claims, and ave Of
the party started back TO the villa
mette Valley, In jam, 1851.
On tue road they fell In With L. II.
Collins, Who had Isnd claim on the
NisquAlly river. ON Puget sound In
this party YES Hill Harmon, Of Tacoma.
and jacob and Samuel Magic. Oollins
persuaded Jehn TheTnton, Charles
Hendricks and Uncle Henry 10 come 10
the Sound With him. In crossing tha
Columbia river at Sc. Helsns. Ms. Van
Asset accidentally sbet himsalf Tn the
arm and shoulder, and bad TO lay over
for q month. That accident, which /
seemed Q great affection, afteFwasd
proved Q blessing 10 hiD and his fellow
men. Starting again on his journey, IN
company with John Thornton. Who had
said with hin, they came 10 ths moukh |
Of the OOwlitz river 10 Q small boak, 40 |
that stream to PumpbreV's Landing In /
q canoe, and footed it across the eoun- /
try 10 Nisqually, where they joined |
these Who mad preceded them. Mr.. |
Van Asseit walked and rods all over /
what Is nov Pierce and Thurgton eoun- |
ties, but found nothing 10 satt him and /
seriously contemplated returning 10 the i
Willamette Valley, the other members /
Of the party offering to isin him. This
did not suft Collins, for be feared they /
would give the
coUHTB1 A BAD NAME,
And 20 be proposed II they vould hire an
Indian and canoe he could accompany |
The party TO q point about 40 miles fur
ther down the Sound that be had visit
ed, which he thought would snlt them.
Agreed. Jacob Maple, Mr.. Balance, Q
tanner, L. n. Collins and Mr.. Van AZ
self made no the party, and on Septem-
Der II, 1851, they set o9t for the Dn-
vanish river. On the l4th they made |
c1RR - G14h - INV AAAASo1s A1o nAsS 4
nov occupied by Seattle was bowling |
wilderness, inhabited only by Indians
and wild beasts. At that time there vas
NOT A WHITE sKTTLER
Within the boundaries of King county. |
On the morning Of September 10, 1851,
thew entered the mouth Of the DIVA
mish river and proceeded up that stream
as far as the mouths Of White and
Black rivers. The appearance OF the
country suited Mr.. Van ASSET, and be
said: "If there is ansther man in the
party who will agree TO settle here, III
be the second" Collins said he voald
Sc ttls II be could sell out at Ms
qualify. Balance bought him out for
S5l0, and the matter vas ct once liked
up Van ASSET located in tse place
still owned by him, and also located q
place for Samuel Maple, adjoining.
Collins located next and jacob Maple
took the place nov owned by Eli Ma
pie. Such was the hrss white settle
ment In King county.